The present invention pertains to vehicle electrical control systems and particularly to a system using existing switches to perform a dual function for the identification of a vehicle operator to a vehicle microprocessor system for the selection of operator dependent preset options.
There exists a variety of manners in which vehicle operators are identified in modern vehicles containing somewhat sophisticated electrical systems in which preset options such as seat position, rearview mirror adjustment position and the like are preset for a particular driver. Initially this was achieved by driver A, driver B switches, which were separate switches dedicated to the identification of a particular driver. With this system, when a driver enters a vehicle, he or she would activate the appropriate identification switch to effectuate options selected by that particular driver. With the popularity of keyless entry systems, a code transmitted by a transmitter for a particular vehicle operator included an identification code for the particular operator such that upon receipt of the code the preset options can be set as the vehicle is unlocked using the keyless entry transmitter. U.S. Pat. No. 5,113,182 discloses such a system.
With the downsizing of vehicles and the increasing control functions available for vehicle electronic systems installed in modern vehicles, the control of such vehicle options is becoming increasingly complicated and the addition of separate switches for vehicle operator identification in vehicle's which do not include a somewhat more sophisticated keyless entry system is undesirable. Accordingly, there exists a need for vehicle operators to identify themselves to the vehicle's computer without the use of additional and costly control switches or in connection with keyless entry systems where personal identification codes are not provided to identify each operator.